Tim Cook to visit Turkish president this week, may discuss $4B iPad deal

Apple CEO Tim Cook will meet with Turkish President President Abdullah Gül on Tuesday local time, with rumors claiming the topic of discussion will be a potential iPad in education deal worth somewhere between $3 billion and $4 billion.

Apple VP John Couch (right) discusses the FATIH education initiative with Turkish President Abdullah Gül (left).Source: President of Turkey's official website

Continuing a mini world tour that has seen meetings with two heads of state in as many days, Cook and an accompanying delegation will next visit Turkish President Abdullah Gül on Tuesday, Feb. 4. The announcement was made on Monday via the president's official webpage.

While topics up for discussion remain unknown, some believe Cook and Gül will talk about Turkey's "FATIH Project," which looks to replace traditional classroom teaching tools with advanced equipment like Apple's iPad. A report from December claimed the two would meet in February.

Cook's meeting comes almost one year to the day after Apple's VP of Education John Couch met with Gül to discuss the country's education program. That meeting was followed by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Apple's Cupertino, Calif., headquarters to get a better understanding of the company's iPad in education technology before putting out a call for bids for his FATIH Project.

According to reports, the initial phase of the high-tech education initiative includes the purchase of 10.6 million tablets, with an add-on option to acquire another 2 to 2.5 million units over a four-year period. Total cost of the plan comes in at between $2 billion and $4 billion.

Cook's visit coincides with the opening of Turkey's first Apple Store, a 21,500-square-foot outlet located in Instanbul's Zorlu Center. Apple is growing its presence in the region and in October opened the doors to its Online Apple Store.

Tim Cook better make sure he gets all his money up front. I've heard there is an awful lot of corruption going on in the Turkish government. I personally think Cook should pass on this project as it sounds too good to be true.

Tim Cook better make sure he gets all his money up front. I've heard there is an awful lot of corruption going on in the Turkish government. I personally think Cook should pass on this project as it sounds too good to be true.

Pass on a $10B deal with a nation that has a GDP approaching $1T? Let's not even talk about how this looks to other nations in the region. You've said some naive things before, but this takes the cake.

The board votes to distribute iPads to 38 more campuses, start purchasing laptops for seven high schools and buy as many tablets as needed for state testing.
January 14, 2014|By Howard Blume

A student smiles as he uses an LAUSD-issued iPad. (Bob Chamberlin, Los Angeles...)
Continuing its efforts to provide every student with a computer, the Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday agreed to distribute iPads to 38 more campuses, begin the process of purchasing laptops for seven high schools and buy as many tablets as needed for new state tests in the spring.